Chaos expected at Imola as super heavy rain expected at Imola this weekend which could well cause drama for the race, offering an opportunity for a car without a Red Bull livery winning the Grand Prix, if the race goes ahead.
Early weather forecasts predict rain this weekend in Imola, where the sixth round of the 2023 Formula One World Championship will be held.
Rain tyres (and then some!) are likely to be used this weekend for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at the Dino and Enzo Ferrari track in Imola. According to the early weather forecast, showers are expected on all three days of racing in Italy, but it could be far worse than initial predictions earlier this week.
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Initial forecast
For Friday 19 May, light rain is expected at the circuit in the late morning. The rain is expected to stop in the early afternoon when the drivers take to the track for the first free practice session of the weekend, but a few drops of rain cannot be ruled out for FP1 and FP2, which will take place at 12:30 and 16:00 respectively.
On Saturday, the weather will be much more unstable than the day before and the overcast morning will be replaced by showers in the afternoon as qualifying for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix gets underway.
On Sunday, showers are expected throughout the day at Imola, which should make for a wet race. At the time of the start (3pm), the risk of rain is currently 95%.
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Cancelled Emilia Romagna Grand Prix?
The Italian meteorological office has issued new flood and landslide warnings for Tuesday and Wednesday. Rain has been relentless in northern Italy recently, forcing hundreds of people to evacuate their homes, while two people have sadly died as a result of the extreme weather.
The entire region of Emilia Romagna has been declared in a state of Red Weather by the Civil Defense for the next two days. With the possibility of the warning being extended to the weekend.
There has been no official announcement from the organisers. It is unclear whether the Grand Prix will be cancelled due to the extreme weather conditions. It remains to be seen how the situation will develop in the coming days. But the possibility of cancellation looms large over the eagerly anticipated race.
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Cancellation over some rain? No way, the race will definitely go ahead, even if only behind the SC.
I currently see 55% shown as the precipitation probability for race day afternoon, so I guess different sites show different percentages, but I highly doubt wet-weather, even if heavy, would cause a last-minute cancellation.
Furthermore, Max would probably still win in heavy rain, given how well he’s generally done in wet conditions.
Btw, the Friday session start times are 13:30 & 17:00, respectively.
It’s a bit more than ‘some rain’, code red at the moment, Santerno river, just 20 mtrs. behind the paddock with very high water levels.
Some roads near the circuit had been closed, with car parks flooded.
Interesting use (unusually) of the ? in the title.
Actually suggests from the headline that this is a question, rather than a definitive fact – as per normal
…. well, the “judge” can now take that ? off the title!!
G
Its the support services availability that will determine whether the race goes ahead or not… if the ambulance crews and emergency services are redirected….